Election Day is an annual reminder on the importance of civic engagement. Unfortunately, an alarming number of Americans do not have the option to vote because of their involvement in the criminal justice system.

Even for adults who are on track for successful reentry, a juvenile adjudication can still create many barriers to success. Sealing a juvenile record is one remedy that could provide valuable relief to those negatively affected by a juvenile record’s existence.

There are many collateral consequences to criminal convictions in California, such as barriers to employment, housing, and social services. An additional concern that criminal defense attorneys should consider when advising their clients is the possible immigration consequences of their conviction.

CJCJ's NoVA case manager, José Luis Gómez, participates in an interview with Radio Bilingüe in which he emphasizes that Realignment is not just about reducing the overall prison population or moving incarcerated people from a state to local level; Rather, José asserts, AB 109 should be primarily implemented by counties to provide an array of services for justice-involved individuals so that they can improve their lives, reduce recidivism, and ultimately promote overall public health and safety.

Forty-three years ago, Charles Manson and his “Family” of disciples brutally murdered nine innocent people in Los Angeles. The killings are among the most notorious in the nation’s history, and continue to haunt the public imagination. By March 3, Gov. Jerry Brown will decide whether to release one of the Family members, Bruce Davis, from prison.